Best laptops for travel: Convenient computing on the road

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When you’re headed out into the world beyond your door, having the right tech can make all the difference. You have a smartphone for staying in touch and tablets for entertainment, but sometimes you need a real computer with a keyboard and desktop software. Just because you have to haul that computer around doesn’t mean it needs to dislocate your shoulder. Here are the five best laptops for travel, all of which properly balance power and portability.

13-inch MacBook Air

Apple’s newest generation of ultraportable computers has a lot going for it. Inside the MacBook Air buyers will find the latest generation of Intel Core processors (codenamed Haswell), which allowed Apple to boost claimed battery life to 12 hours. Real life is never quite as advertised, but the MacBook Air starts off better than most and it gets pretty close to reaching the advertised claims.

The 13-inch Air also saves on battery life and weight by sticking with a slightly lower resolution display than most of the competition. This computer has a 1440×900 LCD panel whereas most other laptops are at 1080p or higher now. It weighs only 2.96 pounds and 0.11-0.68 inches thick — an aggressive taper gives it a slimmer profile.

There isn’t a touchscreen option for the MacBook, but OS X isn’t really designed for that kind of interaction. You can get all the gestures taken care of with the big (and excellent) trackpad on the MacBook Air — you don’t even need to both packing a mouse. If that sounds good, you’re looking at $1099 for the basic configuration.

Lenovo Yoga 3

The Lenovo Yoga 3 not as slender as the other laptops on this list at 3.1 lbs and 0.61-inches thick, but that’s due in part to its unique feature. The Yoga 3 has a backward-folding hinge that lets the screen bend past 180 degrees. You can use it as a tablet, a stand, prop it up like a tent, or just sit it down like a normal laptop. That’s a useful feature when you’re crammed in a tiny economy seat on a long flight.

The Lenovo Yoga 3 runs a 4th gen Intel Core processor for improved battery life, but it won’t get close to the Macbook Air even under ideal conditions. The Yoga tops out at 9 hours of idle time, less if you’re doing more than looking at it. Part of that battery drain comes from the display, which is an incredible 13.3-inch 3200×1800 QHD+ LCD with multitouch. If you’re going to use a Windows 8.1 laptop as a touch device, this is the one to try.

The Lenovo Yoga 3 starts at about $999 with a 128GB SSD and 4GB of RAM.

Asus Zenbook Infinity

For anyone who definitely wants to invest in the Windows 8 ecosystem, the Zenbook Infinity is one of the most premium products you can pick up. It’s pricey, but the incredibly slim and light frame makes this computer ideal for taking with you on the road.

The Zenbook Infinity is 0.6 inches thick, but it does that tapering thing toward the front to make it feel even thinner. Asus also managed to get the weight down to an astonishing 2.6 pounds. The 13.3-inch multitouch LCD is WQVGA 2560×1440, which isn’t as high as the Samsung or Lenovo units, but it’s still a fairly good pixel density.

While this is one of the lightest Windows ultrabooks you’ll find, it does have one feature to be wary of. The aluminum lid is covered with a layer of hardened Gorilla Glass, like the screen on a smartphone. It shouldn’t cause any issues even in the unlikely event it hits something hard enough to crack, but it’s something to watch out for. This laptop is currently running about $1675 with 8GB of RAM and a 256GB hard drive. It’s clear Asus wasn’t targeting the low end of the market with this super-portable laptop.

HP Chromebook 11

In the event portability is much more important than power, a Chromebook might be the right choice. The HP Chromebook 11 is a stylish little computer with great battery life and a universal microUSB adapter, which is handy when traveling. Because it’s running Google’s Chrome OS, you will have to make some sacrifices, but it can still be a great machine to take on the road.

The HP Chromebook 11 is 0.69 inches thick and weighs only 2.3 pounds, so you should have no trouble hauling it around. Instead of an x86 processor, the HP Chromebook 11 runs on a Samsung Exynos 5250 ARM chip. Even with the small, lightweight battery, this machine gets roughly six hours of active use. The 11.6-inch screen is only 1366×768.

With Chrome OS you won’t have access to as much software. In fact, the Chromebook is of very little use when it’s not connected. If you plan to do some computing where there isn’t reliable internet access, a more conventional machine might be better. For only $279, it’s hard to complain, though.